Darith Isenhammer
Proud leader and Patron of House of Isenhammer, Darith has lived his life as a militaristic leader. Having grown up in a time of turmoil, he had not developed the same level of shrewd skill in politics his father had. He was a natural Tactician though, with only a simple grasp on politics. Tough and wise in battle, this descendant of the Old Lords of Arathor is deadly in the field of combat and is a venerable foe. ''Lord-Protector of the Ridge, Duke of Stonewatch, he had inherited his father’s titles and sought to rebuild his family's house that had fallen into decay from its previous glory back before the First War. In the recent months after facing deepened personal troubles, he has recused himself to the small fortification of Embergarde Keep, serving the Kingdom in relative isolation holed up in the March. '' Physical Description Darith stood tall and proud, his face was well defined and looks strong. He had a broad jaw which matched his large build. His nose was big; well it was a size that would match his entire body. Bigger than the average nose, but he was bigger than the average man. His eyes were of a silvery green color, topped off with a pair of fairly bushy eyebrows. His dark auburn hair, which was previously grey from age before his curse, was drawn back into a roguish ponytail, though recently cut for less upkeep. His thick neck sat atop broad shoulders that matched his overall large warrior physique. His ancestors did descend from Arathian warriors of old, and a part of those physical aspects were carried on through generations He carried himself with long and steady strides, often walking at a quick pace, his arms at his side, or sometimes holding whatever weapon he had at his belt. He wore his standard alliance armor most times, still wearing the blue and gold proudly, even in death as he continues to serve the Alliance. At times, he may wear darkened leather armor, whether for comfort of other reasons, it is not known. An alternate plate he wore was his Battleplate called: Bladeshatter Battleplate. Physically he appeared to be only in his late fifties, but he was in reality in his late sixties. The story behind this may be found out through RP with him. In death, his appearance did not change much, his age of late 60s transfixed in time, and the rot not having time to set in. The only remarkable difference that could be noticed is the discoloration in his cheeks, and his overall paleness which is often fixed with makeup. A recent addition to his face however would be his newly engineered Optic Goggles. The goggles come with several extra features including tactical analysis of enemy combatants on a field, infra-red and thermal sights, as well as a zoom function, similar to the scope mounted on the various rifles around Azeroth. Brief History (As brief as can be) Times of Peace Darith was born in Stonewatch, nestled among the central hills of Redridge in 561 K.C. Darith grew up alongside his brother Daelith who was around a decade younger than him. The brothers lived a quaint life. He mastered his skill with a sword with the Guard Captain Master Heindrikk. He had not known real war for a while until he would of been in his late twenties. He was raised to the values of honor and valor. He was taught to serve the realm faithfully, and that rewards came for those who did. Darith was Squired at the time, despite being more talented in battle than the other Squires. He quickly received a Knighting within a year. He was brought into the Brotherhood of the Horse, surrounded by the other Knights that served faithfully. He served the last few years of the Age of Peace as well as the First War as a Knight of Stormwind. First War During the First War, after the Black Morass was claimed, Redridge was the first to fall. Darith's family fled their home for the safety of Stormwind. The Stronghold guards alongside Darith, Dagrin II and the other knights who served the Ridge, fought off the Horde of Orcs as best they could. They made strong stand for around a month before their supplies ran out and they were forced to flee. When the Kingdom fell, his mother died in the slaughter after the siege. His brother, father and he were forced to flee, following the others to Lordaeron a year before the war, There was a small quiet rebellion during the first war in Silverpine, and the previous Baron of Fenris had been disposed of. The King had appointed Dagrin II as Baron of Fenris, in compensation for the years the Family had contributed to both the Human Kingdoms coffers. Darith only had a short time of calm before war ignited again. Second War When the Orcs came to Lordaeron, Darith joined the main Alliance Forces, fighting the Horde in Tirisfal, and Quel’Thalas. It was in Quel’Thalas that he succumb the most grievous of injuries. Being already a battle hardened veteran of the first war, Darith was given command as Captain of a small company of men. After being ambushed by a group of forest trolls, he and his company that he led at the time were slaughtered, and Darith escaped with barely his life. Clinging to what strands of life he had left, he endured and was shortly found by a group of elven rangers. They healed him, using the magic’s of the Sunwell. He recovered, but the Sunwell had left a taint on him. He was for a short time transfixed in his early fourties for nearly two decades. It seemed he had been granted some temporary long life the Elves were blessed with. After the Second War, he returned to Fenris, to take up his Fathers title, who had perished the previous winter from age. There, he had a son, Lucien Isenhammer with his wife Talysa Chartres, that he had recently married upon his return. While the years between the turmoil of the Second War and the Third War were quiet, his wife took a fever in the year 15 L.C and died of a grave sickness. Stricken with grief, Darith isolated himself to the Keep and fasted for many long nights. As the years went by, times would only darken, though he recovered from grief many years later. Third War The family lived in quaint peace for those years and Darith was commissioned as Commander of the Stratholme Guard. Despite being a two war veteran and proven commander, he had to make due with what time of peace there was to be had. Unfortunately, this was right before the Scourges arrival, and the Plague of Lordaeron. Naturally he was there to witness the slaughter Arthas led, and he is ashamed to have participated in it. It was after all a command on his prince. How could he disobey? And with that, he was dragged into another war, fighting for Stratholme, and then his home. The Plague claimed most of Lordaeron, and after Stratholme, Darith knew it was time to leave. The Scourge has reached the farmlands beyond Fenris and Darith fled with his wife and son to avoid the slaughter, although his wife never made it. She was slain by a group of gargoyles that the Scourge commanded that had flown ahead of the army. Devastated, Darith returned to Stormwind, and drank himself near death for year before reforming his life, taking up his seat in his family manse as Duke of Stonewatch and assumed the Mantle of Lord-Protector of the Ridge. Northrend Duty called once again as the call to arms was sounded and Darith sailed to Northrend as Commander of the Redridge Brigade, alongside the Westfall Brigade, in command of several hundred men, and hundred Knights. He served in the North as the forces pushed through the Fjord and the Grizzly Hills. He was one of the survivors of the Wrathgate where he witnessed his Legion of men that followed him to glory, be slaughtered by the Forsaken Plague Throwers. What little men he had, he sent the home as veterans of the Wrathgate. He had no wish to see the rest of his loyal men be slaughtered in this campaign. It was after that he joined the Argent Crusade, under Tirion Fordring. He aided in the assault of Ice Crown, and the Lich Kings Citadel. Back to the Eastern Kingdoms After the fall of the Lich King, he continued his service with the Argent Crusade until Tirion began to gain disfavor among the Alliance, due to his neutrality with the Forsaken. Darith decided it was time to resume his Lordly duties, and he did so for quite a while until he felt a different calling. At that time he decided to join the Guard, helping defend Stormwind so that a decimation like the one in the First War would not repeat itself. After being at position of Sergeant and Master Sergeant for what seemed to be a year, he finally rose to the rank of Lieutenant before the King reformed the First Regiment of the Stormwind Guard, into the First Alliance Battalion of the Seventh Legion, focused on the push in Pandaria, and the safety of Alliance settlements in Azeroth. Through several changes in command, he became Commander of the Battalion, under Marshal Relindor. He led a push by the Battalion in the Jade Forest, Operation Footprint: Pandaria, neutralizing key Horde positions of Strength and led several deployments against Orcs, Gnolls, and Bandits that roamed the Land. After the departure of the current XO of the Stormwind Guard, reforged as the Battalion, he rose to Commander and helped to see it return as the Guard. At the time when he was Commander, Darith was the majority Lord of Redridge, and was trusted to represent her and her interests in Stormwind. With this new key position, he made the acquaintance of several new political friends, including Lord Maxen Montclair, Count Erich Manstein, Duke Meldras Calister, Dame Tamora Rolhelm, all players within the Stormwind Noble and Political Game. As he began to see the world around him change and with the new friends and allies he now possessed, he found his time better spent in matters that did not including Guard Duty. So he stepped down as Commander and devoted his full attention as Grand Master of the Knights of the Ridge, a separate wing that was once an important cog of the Brotherhood of the Horse. As Grand Master he further strengthened ties to his allies. As the Guard continued to grow during his absence, he found his aid was once again required by the Marshal and rejoined in an advisory position along with two well known previous XOs from the Guards past, Dryll Drakoonus and John Rolands. Death On his last patrol, July 3rd Present year, Darith Isenhammer was ambushed and slain in the streets of Old Town. His Last Will and Testament was shortly released. Resurection After dusk, on the 18th of August, present year, the Lord-Protector was resurected from the dead by a rogue necromancer from the Cult of the Damned. His graveyard was disturbed and his body unterred. He was found roaming the lands of Redridge by an SI:7 agent, Anna-lynn Byrnhilde, who took him in as he regained his memory from his temporary state of amnesia. Regaining his past memories, and still having strong vows to the Alliance, he joined back into the military with renewed vigour that was granted by undeath. His aging body was transfixed in time and he did not weaken as he did when he was living. War against Garrosh Lord-Admiral Ashcroft at the time had taken control of the Lord-Protector's seat at Stonewatch through an agreement with his own daughter after his death. With now being only a minor Count of Ridgegarde, and no large standing army that he had previously, he thought it best to pool his ressources with the Seventh Vanguard. The Seventh Vanguard later absorbed the Stonewatch Brigade of 30 000 strong after the Siege of Ogrimmar, making them the strongest force present in the ridge. He soon made sure to retake command as Grand Knight of the Knights of the Ridge, a seperate wing of the Brotherhood of the Horse that served Redridge specifically, as well as the Kingdom. He also ensured that it was up and running as quickly as possible to fight against Garrosh and to defend from a possible counter attack by the desperate Kor'kron. Post Garrosh After the fall of Garrosh, the army life held quite little for him and decided to return to serve as a Stormwind Guard, hoping his services would be better used there then fighting a defeated Horde. He then served as First Lieutenant in the Guard, three ranks lower then he used to be. Legion During the crisis against the Burning Legion, while the Knights of the Ridge and the armies fielded by Ridgegarde and Embergarde were among the many to fall on the Broken shore and continue the fight throughout the Broken Shore, Darith was removed from the public eye. Leading his forces was the young noble, Lucien Isenhammer, styling himself with the name Chartres after his mother. The youngest child of House Isenhammer, Lucien commanded the armies of Redridge in his father's stead. Following the success of Lucien against the Legion, Darith entered further isolation, yielding the title of Count of Ridgegarde and it's appropriate lands to his son. With new title and lands, Lucien soon decided to splinter from the yolk of his Father's influence. He splintered the weakened House Isenhammer and brought the lands of Ridgegarde under the new House of Chartres. Present Day Goals - Exile in Embergarde, the mountain range in the northern reach of Redgridge Last Will and Testament ((Unreleased and to be released at the time of death)) ((*Rendered useless after his resurection, as he claimed back most of his titles and positions)) Written herein is the last will and testament of Darith Isenhammer, Lord-Protector of the Ridge. *The Lands belonging to House Isenhammer are to be passed onto Lucien Isenhammer, my eldest son. Along with the Lands comes the title of Lord-Protector of the Ridge as well as the task to uphold and defend the retaken Protectorate of the Ridge and hold it in the name of High King Varian Wrynn. *The Manor of Valordwell will remain in the family, the possessions within go to the current members of the family. *The position of Grand Master of Kinghts of the Ridge will pass to my eldest son, Lucien Isenhammer as is his right should he accept it. *The seats among the various councils shall be forfeitted for all fairness and if he so choose, Lucien Isenhammer may put forward his candidacy for re-inlistment into these seats to carry on my work. Small notes Although a Duke, he prefers to not be reffered to one in day to day buisness, only in official realm affairs. He regards himself as more of a military man than a political and prefers the use of his title of Lord-Protector, given to him after his years of service protecting the realm. Gallery WoWScrnShot 053013 154419.jpg WoWScrnShot 082813 200621.jpg Duo.jpg Website 4.jpg WoWScrnShot 082813 192953.jpg WoWScrnShot 082813 191833.jpg WoWScrnShot 082813 192004.jpg WoWScrnShot 082813 202317.jpg WoWScrnShot_091313_174554.jpg|Darith upon the sands of Durotar in his Gilded Imperial Battlegear, bearing Redridge red. WoWScrnShot_091313_174625.jpg|Wearing his Knightly armor just before talk with the Horde Rebels in Durotar. Scan VM3.jpg|Darith in his Ceremonial Garb. (Torso and face) Category:House of Isenhammer Category:Human Category:Stormwind Peerage Category:Characters Category:Brotherhood of the Horse Category:The Stormwind Guard Category:Argent Crusade Category:Stormwind House of Magistrates Category:Stromgarde Peerage Category:Stromgarde House of Nobles Category:Stormwindian